The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1887-02-04
TmR CAPITAL.

meets with universal respect, II Il matter
ct history that In our own country At an
early day Judges In two states were lmpeach.
ed for annulling laws Of the Legislatures Of
their respective states. The views Of the
Governor on this subject are very far from
being cranky. The colonies and early states
were governed more or less by the prece.
dents Of the common law Of England, and
the Supreme Court Of the u. s., hye years
after the adoption OF the Federal constltu.
ton enunciated the doctrine .'that the rem-
edies Of the Federal Courts At common law
and In equity were to be according to prin-
ciples Of common law and equity as dis
tinguIshed and defined In that country from
which we derived our knowledge Of those
princIpI@." ny the common Law OF Eng.
land an act Of Parliament could not be ques.
toned orits authority controlled In any Court
OF justice. England's great law writer said
"this was the highest authority that the
kingdom acknowledged on earth" The
states that held this view Of the legislative
power At the adoption Of the federal consti.
tuition also held that the limitation TO legGs.
latlve enactment could be disturbed only
by the veto Of the Governor. In which case
the legislature still held Its power to pass
the law over the veto OF the Executive. And
our Courts like the English Courts could &c.
no farther than to give statutes reasonable
constructions where they were repugnant or
impossible to be performed. There never
was question In the English Courts and
we may say In our own at an early day as TO
the binding efficacy OF the statute. This
was then the relation between the Court
and the Legislature. The Supreme Court
OF the U. ). was no more than an appellate
Court. And Il would seem that this fact
was forgotten, for Il was only last week that
Justice Miller, In the Bell Telephone case
before that Court, parallzed the lawyers
present By stating that the patent could not
be attacked for fraud In that Court unless
there had been proceedings against Il In the
Court below. Strange that eminent lawyers
overlooked this fact. II only shows how
easily lawyers and Courts stray away from
their old opinions and lean more towards
usurplng power than In restraining IL. The
doctrine cannot be questioned rightfully
that the powers Of states remained after the
adoption of the constitution what they were
before, except 50 far n they had been
abridged by that instrument No state has sur.
rendered iss Legislative power 20 the union
The power Of Congress ID merely Affirmative.
That Il II Congress does not pass laws, the
State can for It's own benefit, but both can.
not occupy the same ground At the same
time and provide for the same objects. II
Is admitted that II the constitution Of Oregon
gives the power to our Courts 10 annnl :
statute II void under the eonStitutloc. then
the doctrine claimed by the Governed does
not prevail. II would seem as II the pro.
vision Of the constitution of oregon on shIs
subject was taken from some old eonsiItn.
ton Of another State where the supremacy
Of tine Lcgislasure was held above ths
Courts. The only question ls does The con
stituiion Of Oregon In this particular give
the power to our Courts for any cause Il
annul the acts OF our own aParliamen..'
Ills surprising that not ono Of our learnes
Judges has taken the pains to meet this h
sue fairly for tlie public good. The people
arc thinking Il over and the more the,
think the nearer they wilt get TO Goyerno
Pennoyer. The authorities upon an exam
ination seem 10 be on the side OF the Gov
ernor.
The attempt to connect the Willamett,
Valley with Eastern Middle Oregon b
wagon road as presented In Senate Bill ~
S., meets with objections The bill call
for $4,000 to make read over the Mint
Pass. The constitution Is now held up As
solid wall against the passage Of this bll
When the Pine creek wagon road bin an
the bridge bills passed At a former sessso
the constitution was never thought Of, II
had been, Il was in such cases only pas.i
board objection. Now that the willamesi
Valley wants link to connect the catt
and farrdng interests Of two empires Il
constitution Is held up as fatal objectio
The law asked for Is neither special N
: local. II Is public law In its broade
sense. A discussion Of the constitution
feature Is to be given in order TO defeat II
!, bill with parliamentary grace.
!. Mr. Irvine's bill to simplify proceedings
Justices Courts was indefinitely postpone
II passed the house and lacked two votes
: passing the senate last session and ought
have passed now, or something like Il
bill. Where man has Ave dollars d.
him and 1t costs ten to make the experime
!, to collect II, he should be heard.
The so.caiIed scandals resulted in nothin
!. And the rea. truth no doubt is the result
just to ali parties. Il was not the scand
so much as II was the personal feeling tn
was contingent" II is we'll for all part
In such cases to remember that discretion
the better part of valor.
The o r &N bridge bill will becom,
law. II Is resting In the House to come
's in It's order Yhen amendments will be
= fered not for the purpose OF killing II, !
y for the protection of other similar intere
:, that will depend on this bridge. :. No ST
:. in the union has been so obiIging to ri
- road companies as Oregon. They have
ways received whatever they called for.
The amendment to, or our really new
sessment law, reported by the commissl
appointed by the last Legislature and n
to tured at great expense to the State died
fore 1t was day light. When on It's seco
reading in the House 1t was indefinite
poisoned 1t is patent fact that one mil
as we'll introduce Bengal Tiger into a Il
islative body as to offer new assessme
law for its consideration. This law posse
ed merit and Il ,uas calc,,Iated 10 redI